Boston College's graduate community will host a biannual literaryconference in Spring 2007. This conference builds upon our traditionalColloquium sessions by expanding outward to take advantage of the richindividual and institutional scholarship in the Northeastern U.S. Weare looking for papers that touch upon our conference topic, a closerlook at unseen influences whose movements across time, space, orcommunity bring change. From viruses, carriers, and contaminants toinspiration and sublimation, these are the intangible forces we inviteor dread. We invite you to interpret the topic broadly, but sometopics might include:

Disease and images of the bodyThe humoral bodyDisease as narrativeInfection and corruptionInvisible contagions: disease, fear, propaganda, desirePolitical, narrative, or aesthetic whispersUnintended references, allusions, connectionsSlippage, error, mistakeSilences that produce changeThe invisible in art, public space, or politicsSpaces of inspiration or corruptionUnusual musesVisitors, guests, outsidersHybridizationOrphans and adoptionsInterdisciplinary borrowingVoices rising from the clamor

In addition to traditional panels, conference organizers plan toinclude one or two panels that address issues pertinent to graduatestudent life and to the liminal position of graduate students betweenthe communities in which they live and the academies in which theywork. We invite graduate students who have an interest in issues likestudent unionization, affordable housing, literacy advocacy, or othertopics of concern to submit panel topic proposals. Traditional paperpresentations should be approximately 20 minutes in length. Pleasesend abstracts or panel topic proposals to colloq_at_bc.edu by Friday,January 12, 2007. For more information, e-mail us at the same webaddress or check our website at http://www.bc.edu/gradcolloquium.

There will be no fees for conference participants or attendees.However, we anticipate that we will be able to offer a limited numberof scholarships to defray travel expenses, etc… Please see our websitefor information about applying.